Oldest Engineering Honor Society Installed at SLU

The installation of Tau Beta Pi was celebrated with a banquet and ceremony welcoming the society's newest members, officers and advisors.

The founding members and officers of SLU's chapter of Tau Beta Pi. Submitted photo

The Missouri Epsilon chapter of Tau Beta Pi was installed at Saint Louis University March 23 with a banquet and ceremony that included the formal election and installation of the chapter's charter officers and advisors.

Tau Beta Pi is the oldest engineering honor society in the United States and the second oldest collegiate honor society in America. The national president of Tau Beta Pi, Larry Simonson, Ph.D., officiated the installation of the society's 248th collegiate chapter at SLU. He was assisted by executive director Curt Gomulinski, and district nine directors, Brenda Kramer and Robert Huck. SLU's initiation team included Raymond LeBeau, Ph.D., Krishnaswamy Ravindra, Ph.D., and Jessica Wagenseil, Ph.D. The new Epsilon chapter at SLU is comprised of thirty-seven undergraduate students and six alums.

Included in the inductees was Frank Lyons, as an honored alumnus, and Theodosios Alexander, Sc.D., dean of Parks College of Engineering, Aviation and Technology, as eminent engineer. Immediately after the formal initiation, the new members were constituted a new chapter in the ceremony of installation conducted by Simonson.

During the banquet, new chapter president, Maggie Foster, served as master of ceremonies, welcomed inductees, visitors, faculty and friends, and stated her pleasure in having the new chapter on campus. Alexander pledged support for the growth of the chapter and acknowledged the efforts by David Barnett, Ph.D., in starting the Tau Beta Epsilon chapter at Saint Louis University. Simonson reviewed the history of the Tau Beta Pi and challenged the new members to pursue excellence in all of their activities, to support the engineering profession, maintain impeccable ethics and serve their alma mater and fellow students. Huck and Kramer offered their assistance to the new chapter and welcomed Missouri Epsilon to District Nine. Gomulinski welcomed the chapter into the association and encouraged the students to participate in TBP activities. The event concluded with Foster and Ravindra presenting charter membership certificates to the initiates.

Tau Beta Pi honors engineering students who have shown a history of academic achievement, as well as a commitment to personal and professional integrity. Specifically, the association was founded "to mark in a fitting manner those who have conferred honor upon their Alma Mater by distinguished scholarship and exemplary character as students in engineering, or by their attainments as alumni in the field of engineering, and to foster a spirit of liberal culture in engineering colleges." More than 550,000 members have been initiated since its inception in 1885.